Building
by shouldsleep
Summary: Companion piece to 'Still Time' Kirsten realises the gaps in her relationship with Ryan after he is attacked and robbed.


Rating: T (I finally looked up fiction ratings- apparently G is really K, oops

**Rating: T (I finally looked up fiction ratings- apparently G is really K, oops. There is one curse word, but no violence or sexual content so that makes this T?)****  
****Summary: Kirsten realises the gaps in her relationship with Ryan after he is attacked and robbed.****  
****Disclaimer: I don't own the O.C. characters or actors. This is a work of fiction and not meant to infringe on any copyrights.**

It seemed a little strange having him just down the hall, but she was glad that he was there.

The closer proximity and increased time together could only help them bond. Kirsten didn't want to waste any time; she wanted to start making strides in forming a real relationship with Ryan.

She didn't expect an overnight change in the way he viewed her, or for him to start calling her 'mom', but she wanted him to know that he could always come to her when he needed help.

Even half dazed by a concussion, she wanted him to know that.

…

When they returned from the hospital it was very late and they were all exhausted.

Ryan was sick to his stomach and slept with a bucket beside him. He spent a restless night waking frequently from nausea and bad dreams.

When Kirsten came in to check on him he startled awake every time, although she never made any noise.

He was sleeping with one eye open now. He wouldn't let his guard down again.

…

The next day, he felt a little better.

Kirsten was surprised to see him up at the usual time, showered and sitting on a stool in the kitchen.

Ryan was taking small sips from a glass of water instead of eating a bowl of cereal like he usually did. She saw an old backpack of Seth's on the counter- they had forgotten his at the police station in their frenzy to get to the hospital.

He thought he was going to school.

Kirsten tried to make some noise by closing one of the cupboards so she wouldn't make him jump again. He turned to look and gave her a little half-smile.

He looked terrible. The bruising on his face seemed more extensive in the light of day, and the circles under his eyes made him look old and tired.

"Ryan, you're not going to school today, Sandy called Dr. Kim before he went to work."

"I won't do PE, and I'll be careful," he promised, ignoring the pounding headache that made him want to crawl back into bed.

"You need to rest. We can't risk you being in those crowded halls… the doctor said bumping your head again could be dangerous, he wants you to take a few days off. He was looking in your medical records… He told us you've had a lot of concussions for someone your age- for anybody."

He looked away, picking up his glass and taking it to the sink. He washed it thoroughly with soap and hot water, before carefully drying it with a tea towel- a folded one from the cupboard, not one of the ornamental ones she always caught Seth using to mop up spills.

He placed the glass gently back on its shelf before asking, "What am I going to do all day?"

"I'll be home. You can just sleep if you want to, or if you're feeling better we could go out for a while… There's a new architectural exhibit at the museum you might like."

Despite her casual tone he could tell Kirsten had really thought this out.

He felt suddenly anxious although he wasn't sure why. Kirsten had become like a mother figure to him, so why did he feel nervous to spend a whole day with her? He spent lots of time with Seth, and he didn't feel uncomfortable alone with Sandy…

Seth bounded down the stairs and into the kitchen, his hair was messy and he looked tired, but at least he was wearing pants.

"Hey Ry, how're you feeling?" Seth asked, looking genuinely concerned.

"So-so, I'm not going to school."

"Yeah, that's probably good. Mom and dad would probably make you wear a helmet."

A car honked in the driveway; Seth looked at his watch and squeaked at the time.

"Shit, that's Summer. I've gotta go, see you later man. Feel better," he called, getting a granola bar and a bottle of juice from the cupboard before grabbing his bag and sprinting out of the kitchen.

The door slammed shut, leaving Ryan and Kirsten alone together.

…

Ryan had gone back to the guestroom to nap. Kirsten was glad to see him resting, and he didn't jolt awake whenever she looked in.

When he made his way downstairs at noon, she had papers strewn across the counter as she tried to figure out how to stretch the budget of her latest project to allow for a tennis court.

"Come and sit, Ryan. I'll just clean up these papers."

"No, you keep working. I can find something to do."

"No, it's good you felt like getting up. Did you want to have something to eat? You missed breakfast," Kirsten said, gathering the papers into a pile and putting them back in her briefcase.

He shook his head, but sat down.

"I'm not really hungry."

"Are you sure? I won't make it," she joked. "Are you feeling okay?"

Ryan shrugged and Kirsten gave him a disbelieving look.

"Upset stomach."

"It might be the painkiller- try and have some food with it next time."

Ryan nodded, but didn't say anything. His own mother had barely noticed when he was injured or sick, and never went out of her way to try and make him feel better. He didn't understand how Kirsten could make such an effort to look after another woman's child, when Dawn couldn't even care for her own.

"Did you want to lie down in the family room? I could bring you some ginger ale…"

"Actually, I was thinking about what you said earlier- about the museum…"

…

Kirsten was excited.

She grinned at Ryan while feeding quarters into the parking meter. She'd only been to the art museum once before, and never with Ryan.

The last time had been years ago as a parent chaperone on one of Seth's field trips. That trip had involved more head counts and bathroom trips than art appreciation, and she was eager to see the new exhibit.

Ryan was embarrassed.

He'd forgotten that he had no money of his own. Once again he cursed the punk that had mugged him and knocked him out (the Cohens' theory of how he'd gotten hurt).

He knew Kirsten would probably offer to pay, but she was already taking the day off work, and his hospital visit had probably cost a lot too.

He knew the Cohens had money- he wasn't blind, but he still felt bad when he thought about how much they were spending on him.

"Are we going in Ryan?" Kirsten asked, looking at him stalled just outside the museum front doors.

"I just realised I don't have my wallet…"

"Oh Ryan, don't worry about that. I'm happy to have someone to go with that is actually _interested_. Sandy would be checking his watch the whole time, and Seth would have to bring his iPod."

Ryan shrugged, but his lips twitched with the hint of a smile.

"I'm paying you back."

…

He couldn't imagine what it would be like to see a finished structure knowing that its design had come from one of your own sketches.

He liked actually seeing evidence of the process of building- blueprints weren't drawn overnight and the actual carpentry could take years. It was interesting to think about all the people involved in the creation of a building, even if the architect got most of the credit.

Kirsten had been genuinely captivated too, and they'd spent hours looking at the scale models and discussing the various styles and influences of different architects, as well as the importance of craftsmanship.

She'd been surprised at how easy he was to talk to, and that he could carry on an intelligent conversation, given the right topic (it didn't hurt that Seth wasn't there to drown him out).

She'd known that he was smart, he wouldn't have been accepted into Harbour otherwise, but somehow this side of him was foreign to her. Maybe he'd just never shown it to her, or maybe she'd never really looked.

…

Ryan was tired when they got home and immediately curled up on the couch in the family room.

Seth and Summer were in the midst of a spirited round of playstation, and didn't greet him immediately.

"Have you played this game before Cohen?" Summer asked, as Seth's ninja took a final nun chuck crack to the head before crumpling on the screen.

"Have you? We're on the same team- why did you kill me?!"

"Are you dead or is it just a concussion?" Ryan asked dryly from his place on the couch.

"Oh he's definitely dead, Chino. Not everyone has nine lives like you."

"He's not a cat."

"Or I would have landed on my feet," Ryan added, gesturing to his bruises.

"So Mom dragged you to the museum? That's rough, man. Did you have to hold her hand through the dinosaurs? She has this bizarre fear of pterodactyls…"

"It was the Museum of Art, Seth- there were no pterodactyls. And it was kind of fun," he said, surprised to realise that he meant it.

…

"We spent the afternoon together and it wasn't awkward… actually I had a really good time."

Sandy smiled at his wife. _God he loved this woman.__  
_  
"I'm glad you got some one on one with Ryan. That kid needs all the good memories we can give him before he hits eighteen."

Kirsten nodded, but there were tears in her eyes.

"What's wrong, honey?" Sandy asked, cupping her face in his hands. "I thought it was a good day."

"It was… but being with him alone- seeing him relax and be himself… It made me realise just how little I really know him."

"There's still time, Kirsten. Every day is a new chance to get to know him."

**Fin******

**I hope this piece resolved some of the issues that weren't dealt with in Still Time. No, Kirsten and Ryan are not thick as thieves and we don't know if he has moved into the main house permanently, but this is a start. Relationships form slowly over time and I didn't want to gloss over that process to come to a tidy ending. Thanks for reading, and please let me know what you thought!**


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